Credible security sources, local officials and residents say recent United States airstrikes in Tangaza Local Government Area of Sokoto State likely hit terrorist targets, with possible casualties recorded. A senior security source in Abuja said “a huge success was recorded in the mountainous areas of Tangaza which had been harbouring bandits that have been redesignated as terrorists,” adding that the delay in releasing footage was “deliberate” and that “there is no doubt about whether non-state actors have been decimated or not.”
The chairman of Tangaza LGA, Isa Saleh Bashir, confirmed that “attacks were carried out in the forest and they were in terrorist camps,” including areas around Tandami village, noting that injuries were recorded though fatalities were yet to be confirmed. United States President Donald Trump said the strikes targeted Islamic State fighters, stating, “Tonight, at my direction as Commander in Chief, the United States launched a powerful and deadly strike against ISIS Terrorist Scum in Northwest Nigeria,” while AFRICOM said the operation was conducted “in coordination with Nigerian authorities” and that “multiple ISIS terrorists were killed.”